State Historical Society of Iowa

"Engineer's Report" in The Davenport Gazette, January 9, 1851

 Download Image Resource

Courtesy of Library of Congress, Morgan, Richard P., "Engineer's Report," The Davenport Gazette, pp. 1, 9 January 1851

Description

Richard P. Morgan was an engineer who surveyed the route for a railroad from Davenport to Iowa City. In this letter published in The Davenport Gazette, Morgan described the results of that survey along with some of the economic opportunities that were possible.

Full Transcript of "Engineer's Report"

Transcribed Excerpts from "Engineer's Report"

Printable Excerpt of "Engineer's Report"

Source Dependent Questions

  • What was the connection between grade (incline) and cost to transport freight and passengers on any railroad, according to the engineer? What impact then did geography have on the location of railroads in Iowa? How would geography have dictated settlement and economic growth?
  • Use evidence from this engineer's report to explain the importance of railroads to Iowa's agricultural economy.
  • Use evidence from the final paragraph of this excerpt to characterize the future benefits of Iowa's first railroad to the state's population and economy.
  • Compare and contrast the description of Iowa from The Iowa Patriot on July 18, 1839 to Morgan's description here in 1851. What was the major change from 1839 to 1851 that led to the different characterizations? What were the commonalities of both descriptions?

Citation Information

Morgan, Richard P., "Engineer's Report," The Davenport Gazette, pp. 1, 9 January 1851. Courtesy of Library of Congress Courtesy of Library of Congress